Dhanteras Trayodashi, the thirteen day of the waning Moon of the months of Kartik (October/Nov), marks the beginning of one of the most important Festivals in the Vedic tradition: : Diwali. Today is called Dhanteras, a day of great importance to the trading class. In fact during Dhanteras people flock to the jewelers and buy gold or silver jewelry or utensils to venerate the occasion of Dhanteras. Many wear new clothes and wear jewelry as they light the first lamp of Diwali.

Lamp of Diwali

The name Dhanteras comes from the word ‘Dhan’ literally means wealth and ‘Tera’ comes from the date 13th.

Diwali or Deepawali “Festival of Lights and Wealth” (marks the astronomical turn of season from Autumn to Winter) is celebrated over five days and peaks on day three , New Moon, with Laskhmi puja, offerings to the Goddess of Abundance.

Through the mythology narrated in the Puranas we will try to understand why this Festival of Light comes at this time of year.

How to restore equilibrium between a Solar and Lunar Eclipse

We are navigating through two eclipses in a row, from the 20 March 2015 Spring Equinox / New Moon – Full Solar Eclipse to the 5th April Easter/ Passover and Hanuman Jayanti 4th April ( Birthday of Hanuman – the monkey god) / Full Moon Lunar Eclipse! This also corresponds to an important transition from Winter to Spring. Eclipses are events of cosmic/planetary alignment when the power of the emotional mind ( represented by the Moon ) is amplified , hence we can be affected by becoming highly sensitive and confused. How to stay grounded in times of great activation ? By simply remaining anchored in the power of our true nature, that is essentially Prana / the inherent intelligence of all living being.

Happy Full Moon – Holi, the festival of colour, love and merriness that is celebrated at the end of the winter season on the last full moon ( Purnima) day of the lunar month Phalgun, which usually falls in March, sometimes in late February. The festival honours the arrival of spring in the form of a carnival of colours, where participants play, chase and colour each other with dry powder and coloured water.

Holi – Spring Festival Of Colours

Spring is symbolic of growth and renewal and nature begins to bloom and blossom in a multitude of colours.

The spring season, during which the weather changes, is also the time where we get rid of the toxicity and lethargy accumulated in Winter, often through fevers and colds. During the Festival of Holi the playful throwing of natural coloured powders has a medicinal significance: the colours are traditionally made of medicinal herbs prescribed by Āyurvedic doctors like Neem, Kumkum ( made of Saffron or Turmeric) , Haldi ( Turmeric ) and Bilva. Continue reading “Spring Full Moon – Holi Yogic Salad!”→

I have been ritually honouring the turning points of time ( beginning of a new month, cross-quarters , Equinoxes and Solstices ) on the wheel of the year since an early age – my teens! – in a very spontaneous and nearly religious way, that was dictated only by that inherent connection with nature that we all have as kids.

All transitions in and out of the season are cardinal points of the year and carry a special energy. We can consciously decide to embrace and embody these transitions ( Vinyasas of the Sun and the Moon !) as a ritual, to honour the cosmological flowing of time. Or we can decide to ignore this intelligence built into the cosmos and isolate ourselves from it, going against the grain.

Nature is intrinsically intelligent. Consequentially if we learn to attune our inner clock to its universal micro (hourly/ daily/weekly/ ) and macro cycles ( season/yearly/solar and monthly /lunar) we maximise our chances to live our lives to the fullest, in a happy, enriching and harmonious fashion.

Autumn calls for renewal in the form of letting go. We are urged to reorganise our inner and outer space as thoughts , routines, relationships, and projects . This season calls for inner focus and organised effort, we get to gather all our inner strength and skilfully prepare to approach the end of the year.

As this is quite a turning point we get an extra boost of power from the mighty Durga, The Invincible, that represents the courage that comes from staying connected to one’s heart, the impulse to protect ourselves from negative habits and the force to eradicate them and replace them with good ones.

Happy Solstice: today, 21 June 2014 at 10:51 UT the Sun reaches its highest excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere at the Tropic of Cancer. Then it begins its journey from the Northern Hemisphere back down towards the Southern Hemisphere from the tropic of Cancer to the Tropic of Capricorn.

Surya riding his Chariot. Sun rising on the banks of Ganges at Rishikesh

Sol – Stice means the SUN STANDS STILL. There is a magic turn: we glide down toward the cycle of next 6 months to embrace an energetic shift that corresponds to the fact that the axis of the Earth ( Northern Hemisphere) from today and for the next 6 months is pointing away from the Sun.

At this point of year you should have filled your cup with your own personal nectar , generated between Winter Solstice and Summer Solstice, and now is time to enjoy, celebrate the full-ness of life whatever that means for you, give up worrying, and bask in the warmth and life-giving rays of Sun. Continue reading “Early Morning Summer Solstice Meditation”→

Happy Ekadasi. Twice a month in the Vedic Lunar Calendar ( and 24 times in the cycle of a solar year) is EKADASi… Ekadasi falls twice in a Lunation ( Lunar month , is calculated as a cycle of 30 days) and it is the perfect time of the month to embrace fasting. Normally a cycle of fasting would last for four consecutive days from Ekadasi to the day before Full Moon or to the day of New Moon. Fasting is not recommended if you are pregnant, on your moon or you are ill. Ekadasi is an auspicious day for fasting and this is the right time of the year for cleansing to be aligned with the flow of Spring. Ekadasi means ( eka= 1 and Dasi = 10 1+10 = 11 ) the 11th day of the Calendar Month, before FULL or to NEW MOON .

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DROPS OF NECTAR

“Energy moves in Waves, Waves move in Patterns, Patterns move in Rhythms.
A Human Being is just that
Energy
Waves
PAtters
Rhythms
Nothing more, nothing less a dance"
...how do i shape stillness with my feet?!
Gabrielle Roth

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The most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt within the heart.
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